Not sure if it's the same bartender - short, young blonde girl - but I had the exact same experience. I was sitting at the bar and made to feel like I was a huge inconvenience for wanting another drink or ordering food (basic eye contact, which a decent bartender should be able to pick up on, was totally unsuccessful).

Agree that the food is NOT good. Would need a heavy dose of some good hot sauce to make it even passable, and the prices make Taqueria that much more appealing.

That said, the indoor and outdoor areas are fairly unique in DTJC, and I will probably return to give them another chance on just drinks. Really need to figure out their service issues though - I was quoted a 90-minute wait for a table, despite half of their seating being empty!

Tried Gringos for the first time on Saturday evening. We go there are around 6:30pm. The outside area was pretty full, and so was the dinning room. I was prepared for a wait, but to my surprise I was seated right away. Ordered drinks pretty quickly, and some chips w/ salsa and guacamole for the table. Chips came quickly, and were decent. Drink were okay. Not the best margarita I have ever had, but I have had far worse. We ordered the Al Pastor, Holy Mole, and Pig Out tacos. I like the Al Pastor and Pig Out the best.

Overall it was a good experience except for the service. I know the service in DTJC can leave one wishing for more; especially given our proximity to NYC, but this was one of the worst experiences yet. Our waitress seemed to be to busy chatting with her friends behind the bar than to server her tables.

Funny you say that because you are on the mark. The over all feeling is good. Drinks are good also. But the food is totally flavor less. Something they have to work on. Seems to lack every thing that goes into a real Taco. But, on the other hand, there are plenty of restaurants that cater to the drink rather then food.

Went last week with my wife and we went early because we like to talk, not scream, over dinner. Outside was pretty sunny so we opted for inside quiet. Staff wasn't terribly experienced but they were friendly and attentive. Portions were pretty small for the price but everything was pretty tasty. The worst part was a terrible beer selection: Only 4 beers on tap and two of them were SO fruit-flavored and downright bad. Will probably go back but not in a rush and I hope they sort out their beer selection disaster.

I am with jcgirl... I went there with very low expectations and loved it. The place was fun, the food was good, and the service was really good. Nothing to complain about, other than some items were a little too salty. I will definitely be back.

Gringo’s Jersey City, It’s the only restaurant in town with a sawed-off milk truck in the dining room. Gringo’s, the new Mexican eatery that just opened a few weeks ago in Downtown Jersey City features a sawed-in-half milk truck where Chef Rick Truocchio and his crew prepare dishes like Holy Mole tacos and Guac.

third_street_hats wrote:This may end up being mine and EasyGibson's favorite restaurant of all time if that open til 3am weekend taco window starts pulling away some of the lingering Talde crowd.

I've started actively hoping Talde burns to the ground. Early morning fire. No injuries. No damage to the rentals above. Just a kitchen fire that puts them out of business for 6 months to a year while they rehab. Is that wrong?

We hit peak shitty neighbor when their security guard fought a guy in MY STAIRWELL. Escorted the guy out of the club, alright solid move. Instead of diffusing the situation though, they brawled in my vestibule and fucked up my mailboxes.While it is actually pretty funny to me, if I were not a guy that spends a lot of his time on WSHH, I might find it less funny.

Worst neighbors I've ever had, and that includes the neighbors that used to rob my roommates at gunpoint regularly. At least they were fucking quiet about it.

what does Talde put in their drinks that propels their clientele to SCREAM all the way up Erie Street at 2am? booze usually makes me a little sleepy.

Rolon's (the keyhole) has been across the street for fifty years, and you never hear boo from them. it is possible to have a bar in a residential neighborhood, when said bar isn't patronized by assholes.

so yes, please Gringos, take our late-night Talde douchebags. we'll give you all the stars on Yelp if you do.

third_street_hats wrote:This may end up being mine and EasyGibson's favorite restaurant of all time if that open til 3am weekend taco window starts pulling away some of the lingering Talde crowd.

I've started actively hoping Talde burns to the ground. Early morning fire. No injuries. No damage to the rentals above. Just a kitchen fire that puts them out of business for 6 months to a year while they rehab. Is that wrong?

We hit peak shitty neighbor when their security guard fought a guy in MY STAIRWELL. Escorted the guy out of the club, alright solid move. Instead of diffusing the situation though, they brawled in my vestibule and fucked up my mailboxes.While it is actually pretty funny to me, if I were not a guy that spends a lot of his time on WSHH, I might find it less funny.

Worst neighbors I've ever had, and that includes the neighbors that used to rob my roommates at gunpoint regularly. At least they were fucking quiet about it.

dr_nick_riviera wrote:As much as I love tacos, how many more Mexican places does JC really need?

Till there's one within a few blocks of me in HP! I'll trade you a pizza joint, we've got an overabundance, like 5 between Rustique and Carmine's. I was sad when Future stopped making burritos, I'm just not usually going to go as far as PH or VVP for lunch.

mfadam wrote:Hey Dr - let's just stick to facts please. I'm all for smart commercial development. In fact a well planned out restaurant/ bar area no doubt raises property values on the whole. The key is "smart". JC has a very haphazard restaurant overlay and toothless code when it comes to distinctions between bars and restaurants. You think JCPD enforces noise code much?

So you get places like Gringos which would be far less likely to cause problems were it not surrounded by residential homes/condos. It's pretty tough to argue that a place like that open til 3am on weekends is going to be a net positive for neighboring residents. It's not much different than being close to a fraternity house or airport. People get discounts on real estate to compensate for all the negative externalities.

Furthermore being close to Chris Columbus is an apples to oranges argument. You think there's much noise coming from that road past 10PM? Nope. Plus any auto noise is much different that low end bass from bar stereos and the yelling drunks rolling out after last call.

OK, if we stick to the facts, a quick lookup of the location on Google street view, there really isn't all that much residential around it. You have maybe three buildings in the vicinity. If we go by your logic, any planned business within 50 feet of a residential building should get shelved. People live in the buildings near Porta - should we just tear that place down? By your logic, we'd never be able to put a bar, restaurant or any kind of entertainment venue anywhere in the city. You used similar disingenuous and easily disproven arguments when you railed against the horror of a Cuban restaurant opening on Montgomery St.

Hey Dr - let's just stick to facts please. I'm all for smart commercial development. In fact a well planned out restaurant/ bar area no doubt raises property values on the whole. The key is "smart". JC has a very haphazard restaurant overlay and toothless code when it comes to distinctions between bars and restaurants. You think JCPD enforces noise code much?

So you get places like Gringos which would be far less likely to cause problems were it not surrounded by residential homes/condos. It's pretty tough to argue that a place like that open til 3am on weekends is going to be a net positive for neighboring residents. It's not much different than being close to a fraternity house or airport. People get discounts on real estate to compensate for all the negative externalities.

Furthermore being close to Chris Columbus is an apples to oranges argument. You think there's much noise coming from that road past 10PM? Nope. Plus any auto noise is much different that low end bass from bar stereos and the yelling drunks rolling out after last call.

Isn't that exactly why they SHOULD call it Gringos? They aren't advertising themselves as an authentic Mexican restaurant. And I feel like if they did try and take that route they would get criticized for that too.. They aren't trying to pretend to be something they're not-they are putting it right out there with the restaurant name.

Damned if they do, Damned if they don't. There is plenty of room for another "mexican-inspired" restaurant in downtown JC. How many pizza places do we have at this point?

The more tacos the merrier.

As much as I love tacos, how many more Mexican places does JC really need? There's two Taqueria locations, Orale, Bubby's Burritos, Sol Azteca (now moving into aforementioned building on Montgomery St.). It feels like there's a huge oversupply of Mexican places.

Isn't that exactly why they SHOULD call it Gringos? They aren't advertising themselves as an authentic Mexican restaurant. And I feel like if they did try and take that route they would get criticized for that too.. They aren't trying to pretend to be something they're not-they are putting it right out there with the restaurant name.

Damned if they do, Damned if they don't. There is plenty of room for another "mexican-inspired" restaurant in downtown JC. How many pizza places do we have at this point?

Haggis wrote:We had a GREAT hot dog joint in Chicago called "Felony Franks",

That sounds awesome, like something out of Pulp Fiction.

Mikey,. That story has been outrageous, a real poster child of PC run amok. I've gotten into huge online arguments over this crap. According to Orthodoxy, had one of those women had a Mexican great grandparent, it would have been ok because one drop and all. Reverse racism is still racism.

We had a GREAT hot dog joint in Chicago called "Felony Franks", all the employees were ex- convicts that simply needed work.You'd go to the counter and they'd ask "How do you plead your case"? (your cue to order) Chain Gang Chili Dog, Pardon Polish or Probation Burgers, The Misdemeanor Wiener, Freedom Fries, if you wanted 2 wieners you ordered The Repeat Offender.It was great fun for all until this one bug up your ass alderman and a few nimby's ruined it for everyone. And left many out of work..

mfadam wrote:there seems to be minimal consideration for impact on residential neighbors with the bar boom occurring in DTJC.

Gringos looks like fun but the location is terrible in terms of the negative impact it will have on neighbors. They somehow got permits for a roof deck (neighboring rowhouse is 10 feet away) and outdoor seating by Coles.

All of those residential units within the noise footprint just took a 10% price haircut. Not sure that's what they signed up for when they bought...

If Gringos is smart they close at 11 and pay to police Maxwell Alley to keep drunken shenanigans to a minimum...

More NIMBY garbage from you, as usual. If it were up to you, there'd be NO retail, restaurants or businesses or fun things of any kind in the area because god forbid the ambient noise level in a city neighborhood rise above 10db. You threw a fit when a restaurant dared to try and rehab an abandoned building on Montgomery, too.

I think people who choose to move a block away from Columbus shouldn't be complaining about noise or traffic of any kind since they chose to live next to a 4 lane highway in a commercial zone. I'm sure a thriving restaurant will do better for people's property values than a decrepit auto shop with rusty fencing and barbed wire all around it. None of the other late night bars seem to have dinged property values in the slightest.

MikeyTBC wrote:Aside from the awful location in a residential area and how annoying the late night crowds will be; as a proud snowflake, I find it interesting how tone deaf it is. 4 Bros from hoboken open a taco shop named "gringos" in a formerly latino neighborhood across from one of the last social clubs.

What I love about the "appropriation wars" is there's simply no way for gringos to win. Honesty doesn't get points here, and had they called it Caballeros Taqueria they'd be in deep shit.

Yeah, I see your point.

Don't get me wrong, I don't see any problem with anyone from any other culture, loving and trying to recreate another's food, or even traditions. I just think it should try to be done tastefully.

MikeyTBC wrote:Aside from the awful location in a residential area and how annoying the late night crowds will be; as a proud snowflake, I find it interesting how tone deaf it is. 4 Bros from hoboken open a taco shop named "gringos" in a formerly latino neighborhood across from one of the last social clubs.

What I love about the "appropriation wars" is there's simply no way for gringos to win. Honesty doesn't get points here, and had they called it Caballeros Taqueria they'd be in deep shit.

Aside from the awful location in a residential area and how annoying the late night crowds will be; as a proud snowflake, I find it interesting how tone deaf it is. 4 Bros from hoboken open a taco shop named "gringos" in a formerly latino neighborhood across from one of the last social clubs.

"Gringos" is just a little too cheeky and they're trying WAY too hard in the interior / decor.Fun concept, bad location, horrible name. That being said, I'm sure they'll do great with the interlopers.

there seems to be minimal consideration for impact on residential neighbors with the bar boom occurring in DTJC.

Gringos looks like fun but the location is terrible in terms of the negative impact it will have on neighbors. They somehow got permits for a roof deck (neighboring rowhouse is 10 feet away) and outdoor seating by Coles.

All of those residential units within the noise footprint just took a 10% price haircut. Not sure that's what they signed up for when they bought...

If Gringos is smart they close at 11 and pay to police Maxwell Alley to keep drunken shenanigans to a minimum...